Method and apparatus for planning route

ABSTRACT

Embodiments of the present disclosure disclose a method and apparatus for planning a route. A specific embodiment of the method includes: acquiring task information; generating initial route information based on the task information; performing the updating step including: updating the second sequence in the second sequence set based on a preset rule; updating the first sequence in the first sequence set based on the updated second sequence set; and determining a delivery cost of the delivery unit based on the updated first sequence set and the updated second sequence set; and the method further includes: determining, based on the updated first sequence set and the updated second sequence set, a route of the to-be-delivered items delivered from the initial node to the destination node via the intermediate node, in response to the determined delivery cost meeting a preset delivery cost condition.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No.201810242130.4, filed on Mar. 22, 2018, titled “Method and Apparatus forPlanning Route,” which is hereby incorporated by reference in itsentirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to the field of computertechnology, specifically to a method and apparatus for planning a route.

BACKGROUND

Vehicle route planning is a typical combinatorial optimization in thefield of urban logistics/supply chain. The core content of the vehicleroute planning is: designing the optimal route for one or moremotorcades, starting from the warehouse and serving spatially dispersedclients with the minimal cost. In an actual scenario, the vehicle routeplanning may involve a multi-stage transportation flow, and goodsdeparting from the warehouse may pass through one or more intermediatewarehouses before reaching the user location. However, the currentexisting vehicle route planning method is mainly for single-stage routeplanning.

SUMMARY

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a method and apparatus forplanning a route.

In a first aspect, the embodiments of the present disclosure provide amethod for planning a route. The method includes: acquiring taskinformation, the task information including a location of an initialnode where to-be-delivered items are located, a location of adestination node of the to-be-delivered items, and a location of anintermediate node between the initial node and the destination node;generating initial route information based on the task information, theinitial route information including a first sequence set and a secondsequence set, the first sequence set including at least one firstsequence, the first sequence being used to indicate a route of adelivery unit delivering the to-be-delivered items from the initial nodeto one of the intermediate node, the second sequence set including atleast one second sequence, and the second sequence being used toindicate a route of the delivery unit delivering the to-be-delivereditems from the one of the intermediate node to the destination node ofthe to-be-delivered items; performing an updating step including:updating the second sequence in the second sequence set based on apreset rule; updating the first sequence in the first sequence set basedon the updated second sequence set; and determining a delivery cost ofthe delivery unit based on the updated first sequence set and theupdated second sequence set; and the method further includes:determining, based on the updated first sequence set and the updatedsecond sequence set, a route of the to-be-delivered item delivered fromthe initial node to the destination node via the intermediate node, inresponse to the determined delivery cost meeting a preset delivery costcondition.

In some embodiments, the generating initial route information based onthe task information includes: generating the second sequence in thesecond sequence set based on the task information using a large-scaleneighborhood search algorithm; determining, based on the generatedsecond sequence, item information of the to-be-delivered item to bestored by each intermediate node; and generating the first sequence inthe first sequence set based on the determined item information usingthe large-scale neighborhood search algorithm.

In some embodiments, the updating the second sequence in the secondsequence set based on a preset rule includes: removing randomly apredetermined number of the destination node included in the secondsequence in the second sequence set to obtain a third sequence set, andadding randomly the removed destination node to a third sequence in thethird sequence set to generate the updated second sequence set.

In some embodiments, the updating the first sequence in the firstsequence set based on the updated second sequence set includes:determining, based on the updated second sequence set, item informationof the to-be-delivered item to be stored by the intermediate node; andgenerating the first sequence in the first sequence set based on thedetermined item information using a large-scale neighborhood searchalgorithm.

In some embodiments, after determining a delivery cost of the deliveryunit based on the updated first sequence set and the updated secondsequence set, the updating step further include: determining thedelivery cost of the delivery unit determined based on the updated firstsequence set and the updated second sequence set as the target deliverycost, in response to the delivery cost of the delivery unit determinedbased on the updated first sequence set and the updated second sequenceset being less than a target delivery cost.

In some embodiments, after determining a delivery cost of the deliveryunit based on the updated first sequence set and the updated secondsequence set, the updating step further includes: counting a number ofcontinuous determinations that the delivery cost of the delivery unitdetermined based on the updated first sequence set and the updatedsecond sequence set is not less than the target delivery cost, inresponse to the delivery cost of the delivery unit determined based onthe updated first sequence set and the updated second sequence set beingnot less than a target delivery cost; selecting randomly an intermediatenode, removing a destination node associated with the selectedintermediate node included in the second sequence in the second sequenceset to obtain a fourth sequence set, adding the removed destination noderandomly to a fourth sequence in the fourth sequence set to generate theupdated second sequence, updating the first sequence in the firstsequence set based on the updated second sequence set, and determiningthe delivery cost of the delivery unit based on the updated firstsequence set and the updated second sequence set, in response to thecounted number being greater than a preset threshold; and determiningthe delivery cost of the delivery unit determined based on the updatedfirst sequence set and the updated second sequence set as the targetdelivery cost.

In some embodiments, the determining, based on the updated firstsequence set and the updated second sequence set, a route of theto-be-delivered item delivered from the initial node to the destinationnode via the intermediate node, in response to the determined deliverycost meeting a preset delivery cost condition includes: acquiring aminimum delivery cost in the determined delivery cost in response tomeeting a preset update termination condition; and determining the routeof the to-be-delivered item delivered from the initial node to thedestination node via the intermediate node based on a first sequence setand a second sequence set associated with the acquired delivery cost.

In a second aspect, the embodiments of the present disclosure provide anapparatus for planning a route. The apparatus includes: an acquisitionunit, configured to acquire task information, the task informationincluding a location of an initial node where to-be-delivered items arelocated, a location of a destination node of the to-be-delivered items,and a location of an intermediate node between the initial node and thedestination node; a generation unit, configured to generate initialroute information based on the task information, the initial routeinformation including a first sequence set and a second sequence set,the first sequence set including at least one first sequence, the firstsequence being used to indicate a route of a delivery unit deliveringthe to-be-delivered items from the initial node to one of theintermediate node, the second sequence set including at least one secondsequence, and the second sequence being used to indicate a route of thedelivery unit delivering the to-be-delivered items from the one of theintermediate node to the destination node of the to-be-delivered item;an updating unit, configured to perform an updating step including:updating the second sequence in the second sequence set based on apreset rule; updating the first sequence in the first sequence set basedon the updated second sequence set; and determining a delivery cost ofthe delivery unit based on het updated first sequence set and theupdated second sequence set; and a determination unit, configured todetermine, based on the updated first sequence set and the updatedsecond sequence set, a route of the to-be-delivered item delivered fromthe initial node to the destination node via the intermediate node, inresponse to the determined delivery cost meeting a preset delivery costcondition.

In some embodiments, the generation unit includes: a first generationsubunit, configured to generate the second sequence in the secondsequence set based on the task information using a large-scaleneighborhood search algorithm; a first determination subunit, configuredto determine, based on the generated second sequence, item informationof the to-be-delivered item to be stored by each intermediate node; anda second generation subunit, configured to generate the first sequencein the first sequence set based on the determined item information usingthe large-scale neighborhood search algorithm.

In some embodiments, the updating unit includes: a first updatingsubunit, configured to remove randomly a predetermined number of thedestination node included in the second sequence in the second sequenceset to obtain a third sequence set, and add randomly the removeddestination node to a third sequence in the third sequence set togenerate the updated second sequence set.

In some embodiments, the updating unit includes: a second determinationsubunit, configured to determine, based on the updated second sequenceset, item information of the to-be-delivered item to be stored by theintermediate node; and a second updating subunit, configured to generatethe first sequence in the first sequence set based on the determineditem information using a large-scale neighborhood search algorithm.

In some embodiments, the updating unit includes: a third determinationsubunit, configured to determine the delivery cost of the delivery unitdetermined based on the updated first sequence set and the updatedsecond sequence set as the target delivery cost, in response to thedelivery cost of the delivery unit determined based on the updated firstsequence set and the updated second sequence set being less than atarget delivery cost.

In some embodiments, the updating unit includes: a counting subunit,configured to count a number of continuous determinations that thedelivery cost of the delivery unit determined based on the updated firstsequence set and the updated second sequence set is not less than thetarget delivery cost, in response to the delivery cost of the deliveryunit determined based on the updated first sequence set and the updatedsecond sequence set being not less than a target delivery cost; a thirdupdating subunit, configured to select randomly an intermediate node,remove a destination node associated with the selected intermediate nodeincluded in the second sequence in the second sequence set to obtain afourth sequence set, and add the removed destination node randomly to afourth sequence in the fourth sequence set to generate the updatedsecond sequence, and update the first sequence in the first sequence setbased on the updated second sequence set, and determine the deliverycost of the delivery unit based on the updated first sequence set andthe updated second sequence set, in response to the counted number beinggreater than a preset threshold; and a fourth determination subunit,configured to determine the delivery cost of the delivery unitdetermined based on the updated first sequence set and the updatedsecond sequence set as the target delivery cost.

In some embodiments, the determination unit includes: an acquisitionsubunit, configured to acquire a minimum delivery cost in the determineddelivery cost in response to meeting a preset update terminationcondition; and a fifth determination subunit, configured to determinethe route of the to-be-delivered item delivered from the initial node tothe destination node via the intermediate node based on a first sequenceset and a second sequence set associated with the acquired deliverycost.

In a third aspect, the embodiments of the present disclosure provide adevice, including one or more processors; and a storage apparatus, forstoring one or more programs, the one or more programs, when executed bythe one or more processors, cause the one or more processors toimplement the method according to the first aspect of the presentdisclosure.

In a fourth aspect, the embodiments of the present disclosure provide acomputer readable medium, storing a computer program thereon, thecomputer program, when executed by a processor, implements the methodaccording to the first aspect of the present disclosure.

By acquiring task information, generating initial route informationbased on the task information, then performing the following updatingstep: updating the second sequence in the second sequence set based on apreset rule; updating the first sequence in the first sequence set basedon the updated second sequence set; and determining a delivery cost ofthe delivery unit based on the updated first sequence set and theupdated second sequence set, and finally determining, based on theupdated first sequence set and the updated second sequence set, a routeof the to-be-delivered items delivered from the initial node to thedestination node via the intermediate node, in response to thedetermined delivery cost meeting a preset delivery cost condition, themethod and apparatus for planning a route provided by the embodiments ofthe present disclosure comprehensively consider the delivery cost of thedelivery unit for delivering the to-be-delivered items from the initialnode to the intermediate node and delivering the to-be-delivered itemfrom one of the intermediate node to the destination node of theto-be-delivered items, thereby improving the efficiency of routeplanning.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

After reading detailed descriptions of non-limiting embodiments withreference to the following accompanying drawings, other features,objectives and advantages of the present disclosure will become moreapparent:

FIG. 1 is an exemplary system architecture diagram to which the presentdisclosure may be applied;

FIG. 2 is a flowchart of an embodiment of a method for planning a routeaccording to the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of an application scenario of the methodfor planning a route according to the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of another embodiment of the method for planning aroute according to the present disclosure;

FIG. 5 is a schematic structural diagram of an embodiment of anapparatus for planning a route according to the present disclosure; and

FIG. 6 is a schematic structural diagram of a computer system adapted toimplement an execution entity of the embodiments of the presentdisclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

The present disclosure will be further described below in detail incombination with the accompanying drawings and the embodiments. Itshould be appreciated that the specific embodiments described herein aremerely used for explaining the relevant disclosure, rather than limitingthe disclosure. In addition, it should be noted that, for the ease ofdescription, only the parts related to the relevant disclosure are shownin the accompanying drawings.

It should also be noted that the embodiments in the present disclosureand the features in the embodiments may be combined with each other on anon-conflict basis. The present disclosure will be described below indetail with reference to the accompanying drawings and in combinationwith the embodiments.

FIG. 1 shows an exemplary architecture of a system 100 in which a methodfor planning a route or an apparatus for planning a route according tothe embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied.

As shown in FIG. 1, the system architecture 100 may include terminaldevices 101, 102 and 103, a network 104 and servers 105 and 106. Thenetwork 104 serves as a medium providing a communication link betweenthe terminal devices 101, 102 and 103 and the servers 105 and 106. Thenetwork 104 may include various types of connections, such as wired orwireless transmission links, or optical fibers.

The user 110 may use the terminal devices 101, 102 and 103 to interactwith the servers 105 and 106 through the network 104, in order totransmit or receive messages, etc. Various communication clientapplications, such as shopping applications, map applications, paymentapplications, social applications, webpage browser applications, searchengine applications, mobile phone assistant application may be installedon the terminal devices 101, 102 and 103.

The terminal devices 101, 102 and 103 may be hardware or software. Whenbeing the hardware, the terminal devices 101, 102 and 103 may be variouselectronic devices having display screens and supporting webpagebrowsering, including but not limited to, smart phones, tabletcomputers, e-book readers, MP3 (Moving Picture Experts Group Audio LayerIII) players, MP4 (Moving Picture Experts Group Audio Layer IV) players,laptop computers and desktop computers. When being the hardware, theterminal devices 101, 102 and 103 may be installed the above listedelectronic devices. The terminal devices 101, 102 and 103 may beimplemented as multiple software or software modules, or implemented assingle software or software module, which is not limited herein. Theuser may upload, through the terminal devices 101, 102 and 103 orderinformation to the server, for the generation of task information by theserver, and the order information may include information of purchaseditems and location information of the user, etc.

The servers 105, 106 may be servers providing various services, such asbackend servers that provide support for applications installed on theterminal devices 101, 102, and 103. The servers 105, 106 may acquiretask information; generate initial route information based on the taskinformation; perform the following update steps: updating the secondsequence in the second sequence set based on a preset rule; updating thefirst sequence in the first sequence set based on an updated secondsequence set; and determining a delivery cost of the delivery unit basedon an updated first sequence set and the updated second sequence set;and determine, based on the updated first sequence set and the updatedsecond sequence set, a route of the to-be-delivered item delivered fromthe initial node to the destination node via the intermediate node, inresponse to the determined delivery cost meeting a preset delivery costcondition.

It should be noted that the object data updating method according to theembodiments of the present disclosure is generally executed by theserver 105. Accordingly, an object data updating apparatus is generallyinstalled on the server 105.

It should be noted that the server may be hardware or software. When theserver is hardware, the server may be implemented as a distributedserver cluster including multiple servers, or implemented as a singleserver. When the server is software, the server may be implemented asmultiple software or software modules (for example, for providingdistrusted service), or may be implemented as a single software orsoftware modules.

It should be appreciated that the numbers of the terminal devices, thenetworks and the servers in FIG. 1 are merely illustrative. Any numberof terminal devices, networks and servers may be provided based on theactual requirements.

With reference to FIG. 2, a flow 200 of an embodiment of a method forplanning a route according to the present disclosure is illustrated. Themethod for planning a route includes steps 201 to 204.

Step 201 includes acquiring task information, the task informationincluding a location of an initial node where to-be-delivered items arelocated, a location of a destination node of the to-be-delivered items,and a location of an intermediate node between the initial node and thedestination node.

In the present embodiment, an execution body of the method for planninga route (such as the server shown in FIG. 1) may first acquire the taskinformation. In the task information, the initial node may be a placewhere the to-be-delivered item is stored, for example, a warehouse wherethe to-be-delivered item is stored. The intermediate node may be aspecial location passed by during the delivery of the to-be-delivereditem, such as a transit warehouse where the to-be-delivered item isstored. The destination node may be the destination of theto-be-delivered item, such as the address provided by the sending orordering user of the to-be-delivered item. It should be noted that anynumber of initial nodes, intermediate nodes, and destination nodes maybe provided according to actual needs.

Step 202 includes generating initial route information based on the taskinformation.

In the present embodiment, the execution entity may generate the initialroute information based on the task information acquired in step 201.The initial route information includes a first sequence set and a secondsequence set, the first sequence set includes at least one firstsequence, and the first sequence is used to indicate a route of adelivery unit delivering the to-be-delivered items from the initial nodeto one of the intermediate node. The delivery unit may be a deliveryvehicle, a delivery ship, a delivery drone, a delivery staff, etc.,which is not limited in the present application. The second sequence setincludes at least one second sequence, and the second sequence is usedto indicate a route of the delivery unit delivering the to-be-delivereditems from one of the intermediate node to the destination node of theto-be-delivered item. For example, the vehicle 1 loads theto-be-delivered items at the initial node warehouse D1, first unloads apart of the to-be-delivered items at the intermediate node warehouse C1,and then unloads another part of the to-be-delivered items at theintermediate node warehouse C2. Then, in the first sequence set, thefirst sequence of the vehicle 1 may be (D1-C1-C2). Similarly, if thevehicle 2 loads the to-be-delivered items at the intermediate nodewarehouse C1 and unloads the to-be-delivered item at the customer E4,then the second sequence of the vehicle 2 in the second sequence set maybe (C1-E4).

In some alternative implementations of the present embodiment, thegenerating initial route information based on the task informationincludes: generating the second sequence in the second sequence setbased on the task information using a large-scale neighborhood searchalgorithm; determining, based on the generated second sequence, iteminformation of the to-be-delivered item to be stored by the intermediatenode; and generating the first sequence in the first sequence set basedon the determined item information using the large-scale neighborhoodsearch algorithm. When using the large-scale neighborhood searchalgorithm, the objective function may be determined according to actualneeds, for example, may be that the total delivery distance is theshortest, and/or the total delivery period is the shortest.

Alternatively, the item information may be the quantity, weight, volume,etc. of the item. When there are many to-be-delivered items and thecarrying capacity of the delivery unit is limited, the first sequence inthe first sequence set in the initial route information is generatedbased on the determined item information, thereby further improving thefeasibility of route planning. In addition, when generating the secondsequence in the second sequence set, the item information of theto-be-delivered item together with the task information may be used as aconstraint condition to generate a more accurate second sequence.

Step 203 includes performing the following updating steps: updating thesecond sequence in the second sequence set based on a preset rule;updating the first sequence in the first sequence set based on theupdated second sequence set; and determining a delivery cost of thedelivery unit based on the updated first sequence set and the updatedsecond sequence set.

In the present embodiment, the execution entity may perform, based onthe initial route information generated in step 202, the followingupdating steps: updating the second sequence in the second sequence setbased on the preset rule; updating the first sequence in the firstsequence set based on the updated second sequence set; and determiningthe delivery cost of the delivery unit based on the updated firstsequence set and the updated second sequence set. The preset rule mayinclude randomly exchanging the locations of the destination nodes inthe second sequence, randomly splitting the second sequence, or randomlyarranging the second sequence, and the like. The delivery cost may bethe total delivery distance, the total delivery period, or the totaldelivery cost, and the delivery cost may include the labor cost in thedelivery process, the fuel consumption cost of the delivery unit, andthe like.

Step 204 includes determining, based on the updated first sequence setand the updated second sequence set, a route of the to-be-delivered itemdelivered from the initial node to the destination node via theintermediate node, in response to the determined delivery cost meeting apreset delivery cost condition.

In the present embodiment, the execution entity may determine the routeof the to-be-delivered item delivered from the initial node to thedestination node via the intermediate node based on the updated firstsequence set and the updated second sequence set, in response to thedelivery cost determined in step 203 meeting the preset delivery costcondition. The preset delivery cost condition may be a condition thatthe delivery cost is minimum, or the delivery cost is less than a presetthreshold.

With further reference to FIG. 3, a schematic diagram of an applicationscenario of the method for planning a route according to the presentembodiment is illustrated. In the application scenario of FIG. 3, theexecution body of the method for planning a route first acquires taskinformation, including the locations of the initial node 301 and theinitial node 302 where the to-be-delivered item are located, thelocations of the destination node 311, the destination node 312 and thedestination node 313 of the to-be-delivered item, and the locations ofthe intermediate node 306 and the intermediate node 307, and the initialroute information is generated based on the task information. Then, theupdate steps are performed, and the updated first sequence set includesa first sequence corresponding to the delivery unit 303 (initial node301-intermediate node 306), a first sequence corresponding to thedelivery unit 304 (initial node 301-intermediate node 307), and a firstsequence corresponding to the delivery unit 305 (initial node302-intermediate node 307). The updated second sequence set includes asecond sequence corresponding to the delivery unit 308 (intermediatenode 306-destination node 311), a second sequence corresponding to thedelivery unit 309 (intermediate node 307-destination node312-destination node 311), and a second sequence corresponding to thedelivery unit 310 (intermediate node 307-destination node 313). Inresponse to the preset delivery cost condition being satisfied by thedelivery cost determined based on the updated first sequence set and thesecond sequence set, the routes of to-be-delivered items from theinitial nodes to the destination nodes via the intermediate nodes, asshown in FIG. 3, are determined.

With further reference to FIG. 4, a flow 400 of another embodiment ofthe method for planning a route is illustrated. The flow 400 of themethod for planning a route includes the following steps.

Step 401 includes acquiring task information.

In the present embodiment, an execution body of the method for planninga route (such as the server shown in FIG. 1) may first acquire taskinformation.

Step 402 includes generating initial route information based on the taskinformation.

In the present embodiment, the execution entity may generate the initialroute information based on the task information acquired in step 401.

Step 403 includes performing an updating step.

In the present embodiment, the updating step may include sub-steps4031-4033.

Step 4031 includes removing randomly a predetermined number ofdestination node included in the second sequence in the second sequenceset to obtain a third sequence set, and adding randomly the removeddestination node to a third sequence in the third sequence set togenerate the updated second sequence set.

In the present embodiment, the execution entity may randomly remove thepredetermined number of destination node included in the second sequencein the second sequence set to obtain the third sequence set, andrandomly add the removed destination node to the third sequence in thethird sequence set to generate the updated second sequence set. Forexample, the second sequence of the delivery unit 1 in the secondsequence set may be (intermediate node 1-destination node 1-destinationnode 2-destination node 3), and the second sequence of the delivery unit2 may be (intermediate node 1-destination node 4). Randomly removing thedestination node 1 from the destination node 1, the destination node 2,the destination node 3 and the destination node 4 to obtain the thirdsequence set, the third sequence of the delivery unit 1 in the thirdsequence set (intermediate node 1-destination node 2-destination node3), and the third sequence of the delivery unit 2 (intermediate node1-destination node 4). Then, the destination node 1 is randomly added tothe third sequence in the third sequence set to obtain the updatedsecond sequence. In the updated second sequence set, the updated secondsequence of the delivery unit 1 may be, for example, (intermediate node1-destination node 2-destination node 1-destination node 3), and theupdated second sequence of the delivery unit 2 may be (intermediate node1-destination node 4).

Step 4032 includes updating the first sequence in the first sequence setbased on the updated second sequence set.

In the present embodiment, the execution entity may update the firstsequence in the first sequence set based on the updated second sequenceset. Specifically, based on the updated second sequence set, iteminformation of the to-be-delivered item to be stored by the intermediatenode may be determined, and the first sequence in the first sequence setmay be updated based on the determined item information using alarge-scale neighborhood search algorithm or other algorithms.

Step 4033 includes determining a delivery cost of the delivery unitbased on the updated first sequence set and the updated second sequenceset.

In the present embodiment, the execution body may determine the deliverycost of the delivery unit based on the updated first sequence set andthe updated second sequence set. For example, the delivery cost is thetotal travelling distance of the delivery unit, and the execution bodymay determine the total travelling distance of the delivery unit basedon the updated first sequence set and the updated second sequence set.

In some alternative implementations of the present embodiment, theupdating step may further include sub-steps 4034-4039.

Step 4034 includes determining whether the delivery cost of the deliveryunit determined based on the updated first sequence set and the updatedsecond sequence set is less than a target delivery cost.

The execution entity may determine whether the delivery cost of thedelivery unit determined based on the updated first sequence set and theupdated second sequence set is less than the target delivery cost, ifyes, step 4035 is proceeded, and if no, step 4036 is proceeded. Theinitial target delivery cost may be determined according to the initialroute information. Then, the current target delivery cost may bedetermined by comparing the initial target delivery cost with thedelivery cost of the delivery unit determined by the updated firstsequence set for each round of update and the updated second sequenceset for each round of update. By maintaining the target delivery cost,it is not necessary to save the delivery cost generated during each oneof multiple rounds of updates, thereby further improving the efficiencyof route planning.

Step 4035 includes determining the delivery cost of the delivery unitdetermined based on the updated first sequence set and the updatedsecond sequence set as the target delivery cost.

The execution entity may determine the delivery cost of the deliveryunit determined based on the updated first sequence set and the updatedsecond sequence set as the target delivery cost.

Step 4036 includes counting a number of continuous determinations thatthe delivery cost of the delivery unit determined based on the updatedfirst sequence set and the updated second sequence set is not less thanthe target delivery cost.

The execution entity may count the number of continuous determinationsthat the delivery cost of the delivery unit determined based on theupdated first sequence set and the updated second sequence set is notless than the target delivery cost.

Step 4037 includes determining whether the counted number is greaterthan a preset threshold.

The execution entity may determine whether the counted number is greaterthan the preset threshold. If yes, step 4038 is proceeded. If not, step4031 is returned. The preset threshold may be determined according toactual needs. By determining whether the counted number is greater thanthe preset threshold, it may be known whether the multiple update roundsfail to reduce the delivery cost, and further whether the local optimumis achieved.

Step 4038 includes selecting randomly an intermediate node, removing adestination node associated with the selected intermediate node includedin the second sequence in the second sequence set to obtain a fourthsequence set, adding the removed destination node randomly to a fourthsequence in the fourth sequence set to generate the updated secondsequence, updating the first sequence in the first sequence set based onthe updated second sequence set, and determining the delivery cost ofthe delivery unit based on the updated first sequence set and theupdated second sequence set.

The execution entity may randomly select the intermediate node, removethe destination node associated with the selected intermediate nodeincluded in the second sequence in the second sequence set to obtain thefourth sequence set, randomly add the removed destination node to thefourth sequence in the fourth sequence set to generate the updatedsecond sequence, update the first sequence in the first sequence setbased on the updated second sequence set, and determine the deliverycost of the delivery unit based on the updated first sequence set andthe updated second sequence set. Removing the destination nodeassociated with the selected intermediate node included in the secondsequence in the second sequence set may include randomly removing abouta half of the destination nodes associated with the selectedintermediate node included in the second sequence in the second sequenceset. By changing the way of updating the second sequence in the secondsequence set when the multiple rounds of updates fail to reduce thedelivery cost, the possibility of falling into the local optimum isreduced, and the efficiency of route planning is further improved.

Step 4039 includes determining the delivery cost of the delivery unitdetermined based on the updated first sequence set and the updatedsecond sequence set as the target delivery cost.

The execution entity may determine the delivery cost of the deliveryunit determined based on the updated first sequence set and the updatedsecond sequence set as the target delivery cost. The delivery costobtained by changing the way of updating the second sequence in thesecond sequence set is determined as the target delivery cost, whichavoids the comparison with the delivery cost of the local optimumsolution, and further reduces the possibility of falling into the localoptimum.

The method of the present embodiment further includes steps 404-406.

Step 404 includes determining whether a preset update terminationcondition is met.

In the present embodiment, the execution body may determine whether thepreset update termination condition is met. If yes, step 4039 isproceeded. If not, step 4031 is returned. The termination condition mayinclude: the update is performed for more than a given time threshold(e.g., 3 minutes); the update is performed for more than a given totalnumber of rounds of update (e.g., performed for 2000 rounds); the updateis performed for multiple rounds without optimization (e.g., performedfor 50 rounds without reducing the delivery cost).

Step 405 includes acquiring a minimum delivery cost in the determineddelivery cost.

In the present embodiment, the execution entity may acquire the minimumdelivery cost in the determined delivery cost. The execution entity maycompare the delivery cost with the currently recorded and determinedminimum delivery cost each time the delivery cost is determined, andupdate the record of the minimum delivery cost if the delivery cost isless than the currently determined minimum delivery cost. The executionentity may alternatively save each delivery cost, and determine theminimum delivery cost in the saved delivery costs after the terminationof the update.

Step 406 includes determining the route of the to-be-delivered itemsdelivered from the initial node to the destination node via theintermediate node based on the first sequence set and the secondsequence set associated with the acquired delivery cost.

In the present embodiment, the execution entity may determine the routeof the to-be-delivered items delivered from the initial node to thedestination node via the intermediate node based on the first sequenceset and the second sequence set associated with the acquired deliverycost.

In the present embodiment, the operations of step 401 and step 402 aresubstantially the same as the operations of step 201 and step 202, andthe detailed description thereof is to be omitted.

As can be seen from FIG. 4, compared with the embodiment correspondingto FIG. 2, the flow 400 of the method for planning a route in thepresent embodiment enriches, by randomly removing and adding thedestination node included in the second sequence, the second sequenceset obtained by updating, thereby further improving the efficiency ofroute planning.

With further reference to FIG. 5, as an implementation to the methodshown in the above figures, the present disclosure provides anembodiment of an apparatus for planning a route. The apparatusembodiment corresponds to the method embodiment shown in FIG. 2, and theapparatus may specifically be applied to various electronic devices.

As shown in FIG. 5, the apparatus 500 for planning a route of thepresent embodiment includes: an acquisition unit 501, a generation unit502, an updating unit 503 and a determination unit 504. Here, theacquisition unit 501 is configured to acquire task information, the taskinformation including a location of an initial node whereto-be-delivered items are located, a location of a destination node ofthe to-be-delivered items, and a location of an intermediate nodebetween the initial node and the destination node. The generation unit502 is configured to generate initial route information based on thetask information, the initial route information including a firstsequence set and a second sequence set, the first sequence set includingat least one first sequence, the first sequence being used to indicate aroute of a delivery unit delivering the to-be-delivered items from theinitial node to one of the intermediate node, the second sequence setincluding at least one second sequence, and the second sequence beingused to indicate a route of the delivery unit delivering theto-be-delivered items from one of the intermediate node to thedestination node of the to-be-delivered item. The updating unit 503 isconfigured to perform the following updating steps: updating the secondsequence in the second sequence set based on a preset rule; updating thefirst sequence in the first sequence set based on the updated secondsequence set; and determining a delivery cost of the delivery unit basedon the updated first sequence set and the updated second sequence set.The determination unit 504 is configured to determine, based on theupdated first sequence set and the updated second sequence set, a routeof the to-be-delivered items delivered from the initial node to thedestination node via the intermediate node, in response to thedetermined delivery cost meeting a preset delivery cost condition.

In the present embodiment, the specific processing of the acquisitionunit 501, the generation unit 502, the updating unit 503 and thedetermination unit 504 of the apparatus 500 for planning a route may bereferred to step 201, step 202, step 203 and step 204 in the embodimentcorresponding to FIG. 2.

In some alternative implementations of the present embodiment, thegeneration unit includes: a first generation subunit, configured togenerate the second sequence in the second sequence set based on thetask information using a large-scale neighborhood search algorithm; afirst determination subunit, configured to determine, based on thegenerated second sequence, item information of the to-be-delivered itemsto be stored by each intermediate node; and a second generation subunit,configured to generate the first sequence in the first sequence setbased on the determined item information using the large-scaleneighborhood search algorithm.

In some alternative implementations of the present embodiment, theupdating unit includes: a first updating subunit, configured to removerandomly a predetermined number of destination node included in thesecond sequence in the second sequence set to obtain a third sequenceset, and add randomly the removed destination node to a third sequencein the third sequence set to generate the updated second sequence set.

In some alternative implementations of the present embodiment, theupdating unit includes: a second determination subunit, configured todetermine, based on the updated second sequence set, item information ofthe to-be-delivered item to be stored by the intermediate node; and asecond updating subunit, configured to generate the first sequence inthe first sequence set based on the determined item information using alarge-scale neighborhood search algorithm.

In some alternative implementations of the present embodiment, theupdating unit includes: a third determination subunit, configured todetermine the delivery cost of the delivery unit determined based on theupdated first sequence set and the updated second sequence set as thetarget delivery cost, in response to the delivery cost of the deliveryunit determined based on the updated first sequence set and the updatedsecond sequence set being less than the target delivery cost.

In some alternative implementations of the present embodiment, theupdating unit includes: a counting subunit, configured to count a numberof continuous determinations that the delivery cost of the delivery unitdetermined based on the updated first sequence set and the updatedsecond sequence set is not less than the target delivery cost, inresponse to the delivery cost of the delivery unit determined based onthe updated first sequence set and the updated second sequence set beingnot less than the target delivery cost; a third updating subunit,configured to select randomly an intermediate node, remove a destinationnode associated with the selected intermediate node included in thesecond sequence in the second sequence set to obtain a fourth sequenceset, and add the removed destination node randomly to a fourth sequencein the fourth sequence set to generate the updated second sequence, andupdate the first sequence in the first sequence set based on the updatedsecond sequence set, and determine the delivery cost of the deliveryunit based on the updated first sequence set and the updated secondsequence set, in response to the counted number of continuousdeterminations being greater than a preset threshold; and a fourthdetermination subunit, configured to determine the delivery cost of thedelivery unit determined based on the updated first sequence set and theupdated second sequence set as the target delivery cost.

In some alternative implementations of the present embodiment, thedetermination unit includes: an acquisition subunit, configured toacquire a minimum delivery cost in the determined delivery cost inresponse to meeting a preset update termination condition; and a fifthdetermination subunit, configured to determine the route of theto-be-delivered items delivered from the initial node to the destinationnode via the intermediate node based on a first sequence set and asecond sequence set associated with the acquired delivery cost.

By acquiring task information, generating initial route informationbased on the task information, then performing the following updatingsteps: updating the second sequence in the second sequence set based ona preset rule; updating the first sequence in the first sequence setbased on the updated second sequence set; and determining a deliverycost of the delivery unit based on the updated first sequence set andthe updated second sequence set, and finally determining, based on theupdated first sequence set and the updated second sequence set, a routeof the to-be-delivered items delivered from the initial node to thedestination node via the intermediate node, in response to thedetermined delivery cost meeting a preset delivery cost condition, theapparatus provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure improvesthe efficiency of route planning.

Referring to FIG. 6, a schematic structural diagram of a computer system600 adapted to implement an execution entity of the embodiments of thepresent disclosure is shown. The electronic device shown in FIG. 6 isonly an example, and should not limit a function and scope of theembodiment of the disclosure.

As shown in FIG. 6, the computer system 600 includes a centralprocessing unit (CPU) 601, which may execute various appropriate actionsand processes in accordance with a program stored in a read-only memory(ROM) 602 or a program loaded into a random access memory (RAM) 603 froma storage portion 608. The RAM 603 also stores various programs and datarequired by operations of the system 600. The CPU 601, the ROM 602 andthe RAM 603 are connected to each other through a bus 604. Aninput/output (I/O) interface 605 is also connected to the bus 604.

The following components are connected to the I/O interface 605: aninput portion 606 including a keyboard, a mouse etc.; an output portion607 including a cathode ray tube (CRT), a liquid crystal display device(LCD), a speaker etc.; a storage portion 608 including a hard disk andthe like; and a communication portion 609 including a network interfacecard, such as a LAN card and a modem. The communication portion 609performs communication processes via a network, such as the Internet. Adriver 610 is also connected to the I/O interface 605 as required. Aremovable medium 611, such as a magnetic disk, an optical disk, amagneto-optical disk, and a semiconductor memory, may be installed onthe driver 610, to facilitate the retrieval of a computer program fromthe removable medium 611, and the installation thereof on the storageportion 608 as needed.

In particular, according to embodiments of the present disclosure, theprocess described above with reference to the flow chart may beimplemented in a computer software program. For example, an embodimentof the present disclosure includes a computer program product, whichincludes a computer program that is tangibly embedded in acomputer-readable medium. The computer program includes program codesfor executing the method as illustrated in the flow chart. In such anembodiment, the computer program may be downloaded and installed from anetwork via the communication portion 609, and/or may be installed fromthe removable media 611. The computer program, when executed by thecentral processing unit (CPU) 601, implements the above mentionedfunctionalities as defined by the methods of the present disclosure. Itshould be noted that the computer readable medium in the presentdisclosure may be computer readable signal medium or computer readablestorage medium or any combination of the above two. An example of thecomputer readable storage medium may include, but not limited to:electric, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductorsystems, apparatus, elements, or a combination any of the above. A morespecific example of the computer readable storage medium may include butis not limited to: electrical connection with one or more wire, aportable computer disk, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), aread only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read only memory (EPROMor flash memory), a fibre, a portable compact disk read only memory(CD-ROM), an optical memory, a magnet memory or any suitable combinationof the above. In the present disclosure, the computer readable storagemedium may be any physical medium containing or storing programs whichcan be used by a command execution system, apparatus or element orincorporated thereto. In the present disclosure, the computer readablesignal medium may include data signal in the base band or propagating asparts of a carrier, in which computer readable program codes arecarried. The propagating signal may take various forms, including butnot limited to: an electromagnetic signal, an optical signal or anysuitable combination of the above. The signal medium that can be read bycomputer may be any computer readable medium except for the computerreadable storage medium. The computer readable medium is capable oftransmitting, propagating or transferring programs for use by, or usedin combination with, a command execution system, apparatus or element.The program codes contained on the computer readable medium may betransmitted with any suitable medium including but not limited to:wireless, wired, optical cable, RF medium etc., or any suitablecombination of the above.

A computer program code for executing operations in the disclosure maybe compiled using one or more programming languages or combinationsthereof. The programming languages include object-oriented programminglanguages, such as Java, Smalltalk or C++, and also include conventionalprocedural programming languages, such as “C” language or similarprogramming languages. The program code may be completely executed on auser's computer, partially executed on a user's computer, executed as aseparate software package, partially executed on a user's computer andpartially executed on a remote computer, or completely executed on aremote computer or server. In the circumstance involving a remotecomputer, the remote computer may be connected to a user's computerthrough any network, including local area network (LAN) or wide areanetwork (WAN), or may be connected to an external computer (for example,connected through Internet using an Internet service provider).

The flow charts and block diagrams in the accompanying drawingsillustrate architectures, functions and operations that may beimplemented according to the systems, methods and computer programproducts of the various embodiments of the present disclosure. In thisregard, each of the blocks in the flow charts or block diagrams mayrepresent a module, a program segment, or a code portion, said module,program segment, or code portion including one or more executableinstructions for implementing specified logic functions. It should alsobe noted that, in some alternative implementations, the functionsdenoted by the blocks may occur in a sequence different from thesequences shown in the figures. For example, any two blocks presented insuccession may be executed, substantially in parallel, or they maysometimes be in a reverse sequence, depending on the function involved.It should also be noted that each block in the block diagrams and/orflow charts as well as a combination of blocks may be implemented usinga dedicated hardware-based system executing specified functions oroperations, or by a combination of a dedicated hardware and computerinstructions.

The units involved in the embodiments of the present disclosure may beimplemented by means of software or hardware. The described units mayalso be provided in a processor, for example, described as: a processor,including a generation unit an updating unit, and a determination unit,where the names of these units do not in some cases constitute alimitation to such units themselves. For example, the acquisition unitmay also be described as “a unit for acquiring task information.”

In another aspect, the present disclosure further provides acomputer-readable medium. The computer-readable medium may be thecomputer-readable medium included in the apparatus in the abovedescribed embodiments, or a stand-alone computer-readable medium notassembled into the apparatus. The computer-readable medium stores one ormore programs. The one or more programs, when executed by a device,cause the device to: acquire task information; generate initial routeinformation based on the task information; perform an updating stepincluding: updating the second sequence in the second sequence set basedon a preset rule, updating the first sequence in the first sequence setbased on the updated second sequence set, and determining a deliverycost of the delivery unit based on the updated first sequence set andthe updated second sequence set; determine, based on the updated firstsequence set and the updated second sequence set, a route of theto-be-delivered items delivered from the initial node to the destinationnode via the intermediate node, in response to the determined deliverycost meeting a preset delivery cost condition.

The above description only provides an explanation of the preferredembodiments of the present disclosure and the technical principles used.It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the inventivescope of the present disclosure is not limited to the technicalsolutions formed by the particular combinations of the above-describedtechnical features. The inventive scope should also cover othertechnical solutions formed by any combinations of the above-describedtechnical features or equivalent features thereof without departing fromthe concept of the disclosure. Technical schemes formed by theabove-described features being interchanged with, but not limited to,technical features with similar functions disclosed in the presentdisclosure are examples.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for planning a route, the methodcomprising: acquiring task information, the task information comprisinga location of an initial node where to-be-delivered items are located, alocation of a destination node of the to-be-delivered items, and alocation of an intermediate node between the initial node and thedestination node; generating initial route information based on the taskinformation, the initial route information comprising a first sequenceset and a second sequence set, the first sequence set comprising atleast one first sequence, the first sequence being used to indicate aroute of a delivery unit delivering the to-be-delivered items from theinitial node to one of the intermediate node, the second sequence setcomprising at least one second sequence, and the second sequence beingused to indicate a route of the delivery unit delivering theto-be-delivered items from one of the intermediate node to thedestination node of the to-be-delivered items; performing an updatingstep comprising: updating the second sequence in the second sequence setbased on a preset rule; updating the first sequence in the firstsequence set based on the updated second sequence set; and determining adelivery cost of the delivery unit based on the updated first sequenceset and the updated second sequence set; and determining, based on theupdated first sequence set and the updated second sequence set, a routeof the to-be-delivered items delivered from the initial node to thedestination node via the intermediate node, in response to thedetermined delivery cost meeting a preset delivery cost condition. 2.The method according to claim 1, wherein the generating initial routeinformation based on the task information comprises: generating thesecond sequence in the second sequence set based on the task informationusing a large-scale neighborhood search algorithm; determining, based onthe generated second sequence, item information of the to-be-delivereditems to be stored by each intermediate node; and generating the firstsequence in the first sequence set based on the determined iteminformation using the large-scale neighborhood search algorithm.
 3. Themethod according to claim 1, wherein the updating the second sequence inthe second sequence set based on a preset rule comprises: removingrandomly a predetermined number of the destination node comprised in thesecond sequence in the second sequence set to obtain a third sequenceset, and adding randomly the removed destination node to a thirdsequence in the third sequence set to generate the updated secondsequence set.
 4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the updatingthe first sequence in the first sequence set based on the updated secondsequence set comprises: determining, based on the updated secondsequence set, item information of the to-be-delivered item to be storedby the intermediate node; and generating the first sequence in the firstsequence set based on the determined item information using alarge-scale neighborhood search algorithm.
 5. The method according toclaim 3, wherein after determining a delivery cost of the delivery unitbased on the updated first sequence set and the updated second sequenceset, the updating step further comprise: determining the delivery costof the delivery unit determined based on the updated first sequence setand the updated second sequence set as the target delivery cost, inresponse to the delivery cost of the delivery unit determined based onthe updated first sequence set and the updated second sequence set beingless than a target delivery cost.
 6. The method according to claim 3,wherein after determining a delivery cost of the delivery unit based onthe updated first sequence set and the updated second sequence set, theupdating step further comprise: counting a number of continuousdeterminations that the delivery cost of the delivery unit determinedbased on the updated first sequence set and the updated second sequenceset is not less than the target delivery cost, in response to thedelivery cost of the delivery unit determined based on the updated firstsequence set and the updated second sequence set being not less than atarget delivery cost; selecting randomly an intermediate node, removinga destination node associated with the selected intermediate nodecomprised in the second sequence in the second sequence set to obtain afourth sequence set, adding the removed destination node randomly to afourth sequence in the fourth sequence set to generate the updatedsecond sequence, updating the first sequence in the first sequence setbased on the updated second sequence set, and determining the deliverycost of the delivery unit based on the updated first sequence set andthe updated second sequence set, in response to the counted number beinggreater than a preset threshold; and determining the delivery cost ofthe delivery unit determined based on the updated first sequence set andthe updated second sequence set as the target delivery cost.
 7. Themethod according to claim 1, wherein the determining, based on theupdated first sequence set and the updated second sequence set, a routeof the to-be-delivered items delivered from the initial node to thedestination node via the intermediate node, in response to thedetermined delivery cost meeting a preset delivery cost conditioncomprises: acquiring a minimum delivery cost in the determined deliverycost in response to meeting a preset update termination condition; anddetermining the route of the to-be-delivered items delivered from theinitial node to the destination node via the intermediate node based ona first sequence set and a second sequence set associated with theacquired delivery cost.
 8. An apparatus for planning a route, theapparatus comprising: at least one processor; and a memory storinginstructions, wherein the instructions when executed by the at least oneprocessor, cause the at least one processor to perform operations, theoperations comprising: acquiring task information, the task informationcomprising a location of an initial node where to-be-delivered items arelocated, a location of a destination node of the to-be-delivered items,and a location of an intermediate node between the initial node and thedestination node; generating initial route information based on the taskinformation, the initial route information comprising a first sequenceset and a second sequence set, the first sequence set comprising atleast one first sequence, the first sequence being used to indicate aroute of a delivery unit delivering the to-be-delivered items from theinitial node to one of the intermediate node, the second sequence setcomprising at least one second sequence, and the second sequence beingused to indicate a route of the delivery unit delivering theto-be-delivered items from the one of the intermediate node to thedestination node of the to-be-delivered items; performing an updatingstep comprising: updating the second sequence in the second sequence setbased on a preset rule; updating the first sequence in the firstsequence set based on the updated second sequence set; and determining adelivery cost of the delivery unit based on the updated first sequenceset and the updated second sequence set; and determining, based on theupdated first sequence set and the updated second sequence set, a routeof the to-be-delivered items delivered from the initial node to thedestination node via the intermediate node, in response to thedetermined delivery cost meeting a preset delivery cost condition. 9.The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the generating initial routeinformation based on the task information comprises: generating thesecond sequence in the second sequence set based on the task informationusing a large-scale neighborhood search algorithm; determining, based onthe generated second sequence, item information of the to-be-delivereditems to be stored by each intermediate node; and generating the firstsequence in the first sequence set based on the determined iteminformation using the large-scale neighborhood search algorithm.
 10. Theapparatus according to claim 8, wherein the updating the second sequencein the second sequence set based on a preset rule comprises: removingrandomly a predetermined number of the destination node comprised in thesecond sequence in the second sequence set to obtain a third sequenceset, and add randomly the removed destination node to a third sequencein the third sequence set to generate the updated second sequence set.11. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the updating the firstsequence in the first sequence set based on the updated second sequenceset comprises: determining, based on the updated second sequence set,item information of the to-be-delivered item to be stored by theintermediate node; and generating the first sequence in the firstsequence set based on the determined item information using alarge-scale neighborhood search algorithm.
 12. The apparatus accordingto claim 10, wherein after determining a delivery cost of the deliveryunit based on the updated first sequence set and the updated secondsequence set, the updating step further comprise: determining thedelivery cost of the delivery unit determined based on the updated firstsequence set and the updated second sequence set as the target deliverycost, in response to the delivery cost of the delivery unit determinedbased on the updated first sequence set and the updated second sequenceset being less than a target delivery cost.
 13. The apparatus accordingto claim 10, wherein after determining a delivery cost of the deliveryunit based on the updated first sequence set and the updated secondsequence set, the updating step further comprise: counting a number ofcontinuous determinations that the delivery cost of the delivery unitdetermined based on the updated first sequence set and the updatedsecond sequence set is not less than the target delivery cost, inresponse to the delivery cost of the delivery unit determined based onthe updated first sequence set and the updated second sequence set beingnot less than a target delivery cost; selecting randomly an intermediatenode, removing a destination node associated with the selectedintermediate node comprised in the second sequence in the secondsequence set to obtain a fourth sequence set, adding the removeddestination node randomly to a fourth sequence in the fourth sequenceset to generate the updated second sequence, updating the first sequencein the first sequence set based on the updated second sequence set, anddetermining the delivery cost of the delivery unit based on the updatedfirst sequence set and the updated second sequence set, in response tothe counted number being greater than a preset threshold; anddetermining the delivery cost of the delivery unit determined based onthe updated first sequence set and the updated second sequence set asthe target delivery cost.
 14. The apparatus according to claim 8,wherein the determining, based on the updated first sequence set and theupdated second sequence set, a route of the to-be-delivered itemsdelivered from the initial node to the destination node via theintermediate node, in response to the determined delivery cost meeting apreset delivery cost condition comprises: acquiring a minimum deliverycost in the determined delivery cost in response to meeting a presetupdate termination condition; and determining the route of theto-be-delivered items delivered from the initial node to the destinationnode via the intermediate node based on a first sequence set and asecond sequence set associated with the acquired delivery cost.
 15. Anon-transitory computer readable medium, storing a computer programthereon, the program, when executed by a processor, causes the processorto perform operations, the operations comprising: acquiring taskinformation, the task information comprising a location of an initialnode where to-be-delivered items are located, a location of adestination node of the to-be-delivered items, and a location of anintermediate node between the initial node and the destination node;generating initial route information based on the task information, theinitial route information comprising a first sequence set and a secondsequence set, the first sequence set comprising at least one firstsequence, the first sequence being used to indicate a route of adelivery unit delivering the to-be-delivered items from the initial nodeto one of the intermediate node, the second sequence set comprising atleast one second sequence, and the second sequence being used toindicate a route of the delivery unit delivering the to-be-delivereditems from one of the intermediate node to the destination node of theto-be-delivered items; performing an updating step comprising: updatingthe second sequence in the second sequence set based on a preset rule;updating the first sequence in the first sequence set based on theupdated second sequence set; and determining a delivery cost of thedelivery unit based on the updated first sequence set and the updatedsecond sequence set; and determining, based on the updated firstsequence set and the updated second sequence set, a route of theto-be-delivered items delivered from the initial node to the destinationnode via the intermediate node, in response to the determined deliverycost meeting a preset delivery cost condition.